Selling a collection?

[cakedaddy]

Just curious to see if any of you have dealt with selling your orchid collection. I am facing the possibility and a nursery near me is interested in my plants. How does one go about setting a price on plants that are for resale? How does one deal with the nausea that accompanies such a situation? I feel a little queasy just posting this.
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[citywildcat]

Just curious to see if any of you have dealt with selling your orchid collection. I am facing the possibility and a nursery near me is interested in my plants. How does one go about setting a price on plants that are for resale? How does one deal with the nausea that accompanies such a situation? I feel a little queasy just posting this.
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cakedaddy, I have the same problem EXCEPT my collections (they were actually my mom's/I inherited them from her when she passed) are coins and stamps. (I also have a few collections of my own that I will need to liquidate eventually, a mineral collection, loose gemstones, jewelry, and of course, my orchids as well, but my collection is very small, probably nothing like yours.). I COMPLETELY UNDERSTAND HOW YOU NEARLY GET SICK TO YOUR STOMACH WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT IT. I don't know where to start!!! Well, I guess I DO. May I suggest that you do this? Google "orchid collection" and "selling", MUST have the quotation marks, just the way I have them here. I did that for my minerals when I was trying to figure out how to price them. What you'll probably get is many hits on how to price individual items in your collection, compared to what is available in the market, articles written by people who have already done that, and links to people's websites who are buying collections. I'd like to suggest that you NOT start with the links to people's websites who are buying collections. They will immediately offer you the lowest price. One of the best things you can do for yourself is to do your own research. It's time-consuming but at least, you'll have the peace of mind, knowing your items are priced correctly. (Even if you overprice something, someone who may be more knowledgeable about selling, will surely tell you that "you're off in left field" - but better to be OVER than UNDER.). When I started doing my minerals, I figured I have to start SOMEWHERE and unless you START, you'll never move forward. By the way, the other thing I did was to contact a large mineral dealer, who sells minerals, and asked him how do I begin to price my collection for selling. Pick someone in the orchid business that you TRUST, when you ask that question. Someone you trust, who's honest, will give you the advice that's in your best interest. Starting with the "Google process" is the best 1st step, in my opinion, unless you have someone already in the orchid business that you can go. Many people don't, nor do they trust that person to give them to give honest advice. Getting advice from a non-biased third-party, who has nothing to gain by giving you an honest opinion, is your best bet....GOOD LUCK!

[raybark]

As far as setting prices is concerned, I suggest you search the internet for the same plants, see what they are being sold for, then cut that in half. Then consider the size and condition of yours in relation to those, and adjust further.

I have purchased collections a few times, and the offer often comes down to "$xxx for the whole lot...".

[Missanna]

I would say that if you have any very special (monetarily or sentimental) plants that you can't keep, give or sell the plant or a divisions to a few people you feel you can trust. They can safeguard it for you and sell you a piece if/when you can again have orchids. I am lucky to know a guy who has a small orchid business and he is keeping a division of my favorite c. Maxima in case anything happens to mine. When I am able to divide my eldorado, I will give him a piece of that as well. The "price" in this agreement is just keeping the plant in case my piece dies. Anyway, I don't know if you want to break some of it up, but you could get some higher prices on some individuals if you go that way.

[Cjcorner]

I keep wishing my nursery would call and say someone wants to sell their collection so I could go by and have a major buying binge. If you lived closer I would beg to come over and go shopping. lol You might find a ton of prices on that auction website...not sure if I can say the name. Maybe you could put a few of the nice ones on here?? Or a list and if someone wanted one they could have you list it?? *shrug Just a thought

[78Terp]

One of the workers at our local orchid nursery here in Colorado is planning to return to her native Hawaii in about 1.5 years. She has over 300 orchids she intends to sell off. I am lucky to be in the loop to know when it happens.

[citywildcat]

Just curious to see if any of you have dealt with selling your orchid collection. I am facing the possibility and a nursery near me is interested in my plants. How does one go about setting a price on plants that are for resale? How does one deal with the nausea that accompanies such a situation? I feel a little queasy just posting this.
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Something someone said gave me an idea. I don't know where you live but if you're not too far from a major metropolitan area, most large cities have some orchid nurseries nearby. If you live near a large city, you might want to Google "orchid nurseries" OR " orchid greenhouses" (Google both because some establishments may use the term "nursery" while others may use "greenhouse"), IN CONJUNCTION WITH A MAP PROGRAM. In other words, open your map program first and select your radius. Then you can put in your search criteria (whatever that may be), which will be within the radius you selected on the map. You can use the steps for finding orchid nurseries in any city, anywhere in the country, even if you're traveling. (How much fun would it be to take a trip to San Francisco and come back with a suitcase of orchids?!?!?! Since you're in the United States, you can take them interstate. I don't know if you'd be asked for any documentation or not but I believe it's permissible - please check.). You know, I think I'm taking a trip in the very near future. I wonder what I should do with my time...DUH!!

[gardenguysorchids]

Most likely your collection is more valuable to you than to someone else. That is basically true with anything one collects unless it gold or jewels and even those prices rise and fall. The value of a collection of anything is always greater to the owner. With orchids, unless they are quite rare or are large awarded specimen plants, the actual value may be very little. I keep a list of my orchids and what I have paid for them. If I decide to sell or trade one I look up the price paid and go from there. You may also want to contact your local orchid society. They could be of great help with this. Just remember it is better to find a good home for beloved plants than to risk selling them to someone who is only out to make a profit off them. Good Luck, my friend. I hope in the end you don't have to sell them.

[citywildcat]

Most likely your collection is more valuable to you than to someone else. That is basically true with anything one collects unless it gold or jewels and even those prices rise and fall. The value of a collection of anything is always greater to the owner. With orchids, unless they are quite rare or are large awarded specimen plants, the actual value may be very little. I keep a list of my orchids and what I have paid for them. If I decide to sell or trade one I look up the price paid and go from there. You may also want to contact your local orchid society. They could be of great help with this. Just remember it is better to find a good home for beloved plants than to risk selling them to someone who is only out to make a profit off them. Good Luck, my friend. I hope in the end you don't have to sell them.

gardenguysorchids, what you do with your orchids is what I've done with mine. I started doing that when I was younger and spreadsheets first came out. I began doing it with my gem and mineral collection and continue to keep it updated today. Perpetual inventories are priceless. What would happen if you dropped dead today? People would come across your items, whether they're minerals, orchids, gems, stamps, coins, or whatever, and likely not realize the value of them. Even if one person was a mineral collector, you might be an orchid collector and they surely wouldn't realize how much your collection was worth. PERPETUAL INVENTORIES ARE SOMETHING THAT NEEDS TO BE KEPT FOR ALL TYPES OF COLLECTIONS (unfortunately, my mom didn't do it with her stamps and coins. I now have a bag of each, with everything all mixed together. It's simply OVERWHELMING to contemplate looking at each item, trying to determine what it is and how much it's worth. I certainly have no idea what was paid for it. When I had more than four or five orchids, I started my perpetual inventory. THAT'S A GREAT POINT, gardenguysorchids, AND NEEDS TO BE EMPHASIZED... Thanks for your very important post!